Untimely Intelligence

Su Yu spread open the Brass Book and displayed its contents before Qian Renxue.

Qian Renxue looked closely and saw the words written on it—

[Those who violate the following rules shall be punished.]

[Those who voluntarily confess and do not resist punishment shall receive reduced punishment and expedited sentencing.]

[1. Insubordination—when the party with lower Soul Power Level provokes the party with higher Soul Power Level, they shall be exiled.]

[2. Bullying the Weak shall be severely punished.]

"So, I was exiled while he got chopped."

"And because I showed a good attitude in confessing, I was exiled straight away."

Qian Renxue frowned. "But that still isn't right, is it?"

"You said before that this kind of operation requires deceiving yourself, or rather, acting from the heart... you?"

Su Yu immediately snorted. "What about me?"

"As a law-abiding citizen, I respect the law from the bottom of my heart."

"My sincerity is more genuine than real gold!"

"Is that so? I couldn't tell..." Qian Renxue said.

Su Yu curled his lip. "Your misunderstanding of me runs too deep. I'm an honest man through and through!"

Qian Renxue opened her mouth, then chose to skip the subject.

"I thought an Agility Attack System could restrain you..."

Su Yu explained, "Because this was a spar, I could prepare my response in advance."

"If he hadn't announced himself just now and had attacked by surprise, I'd have been dead already."

"Actually, I've wanted to complain about this for a long time. Before a fight, both sides announce their names, levels, and martial souls... isn't that just handing the enemy intelligence?"

"In my view, those martial souls famous throughout the world are actually at a huge disadvantage."

"The moment you reveal a Clear Sky Hammer, I immediately know you're a strength-type Soul Master. Of course I'll keep my distance and kite you. No idiot would rush up and take it head-on, right?"

"But when I reveal the Brass Book, who knows what type I am?"

"If my opponent wants to be cautious and slowly probe me, gathering intelligence bit by bit..."

"Then I'll have plenty of time to prepare and create rules that favor me."

"And if my opponent is some reckless brute who charges right in..."

"That's fine too. My opening move is to forbid harming others. Anyone who breaks the law gets whipped."

Qian Renxue frowned. "But as the number of times you fight increases, won't they understand sooner or later?"

Su Yu smiled. "Of course not. To outsiders, my first soul skill is the invisible and formless Wind Blade, which excels at sneak attacks, while my second soul skill is compulsory Spatial Teleportation."

"As long as I don't say anything, even if they rack their brains, they'll never think in the direction of Rule Creation."

Qian Renxue lowered her eyes slightly. "What about later? Once you establish yourself, the Brass Book's name will become as famous as the Clear Sky Hammer, Seven Treasure Glazed Pagoda, and Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon. What will you do then?"

"What do you mean, what will I do? Intelligence has an expiration date. How could we possibly keep the initiative forever? What kind of fantasy are you having?"

"When I'm weak in the early stages, it's enough to keep it hidden and catch them off guard."

"Once I break through to Title Douluo, what can they do even if they know about my soul skills?"

Su Yu leaned back theatrically. "Do you know what it means to crush ten thousand techniques with sheer strength?"

Qian Renxue narrowed her eyes and murmured, "You're right. Intelligence can give us a temporary advantage, but it can't keep us ahead forever..."

Then Qian Renxue's lips curled upward. "It's fine. Intelligence can be refreshed too."

Su Yu glanced at Qian Renxue, not understanding why she had suddenly started smiling.

"Come to think of it, I've always wanted to complain about this. Spirit Hall is spread across both great empires. Even remote villages have Spirit Hall deacons conducting regular inspections."

"And yet they still couldn't find Tang Hao after all these years..."

"Isn't our organization's intelligence transmission efficiency a little too low?"

Qian Renxue knitted her brows tightly. "I came to the Heaven Dou Empire when I was nine, so I haven't been deeply involved in Spirit Hall's internal affairs."

Su Yu thought for a moment. "Let's use me as an example."

"Suppose you hadn't sent people to kidnap me."

Qian Renxue couldn't help interrupting, "When did I send people to kidnap you?"

Su Yu wore a strange expression and said indignantly, "See? You're the textbook example of someone ignorant of the law."

"That day, I was lying obediently in bed when I was stuffed straight into a sack!"

"If that wasn't kidnapping, what was it?"

"Right, and it was breaking and entering too!"

"Is there no law? Is there no justice?"

Qian Renxue's face reddened. She waved a hand. "Why bring that up? Continue talking about Spirit Hall's inefficiency."

Su Yu snorted and continued, "If I hadn't been kidnapped by you, I should have awakened my martial soul at the second ceremony held by the Spirit Hall deacon."

"Would news of my Innate Full Soul Power have reached the upper ranks then?"

Qian Renxue nodded as if it were only natural. "Since you were near Heaven Dou City, the news would first reach Salas. He would recruit you himself and report it to Spirit City."

Su Yu nodded. "Leaving Salas's character aside, I trust his professional ability."

"But what if someone awakened Innate Full Soul Power in a remote village?"

"The deacon reports it to the branch bishop, then the branch reports it to the sub-hall, the sub-hall reports to the main hall, and finally the main hall reports to the sacred hall. Salas compiles it all and reports it to Spirit City?"

Qian Renxue nodded hesitantly. "That should be how it works. What's the problem?"

"Of course there's a problem!"

"Tell me, among all those steps, couldn't something like this happen?"

Su Yu pinched his throat and lowered his voice. "It's actually the legendary Innate Full Soul Power!"

"What a pity. It's only an ordinary book, a useless martial soul. Better not report it upward..."

Qian Renxue's expression turned cold. "How would they dare?"

Su Yu rolled his eyes at her. "Why wouldn't they? Lao Wang is in the Crown Prince's Residence, less than a kilometer away from you, and he still dares to sneak food."

"How are you supposed to manage Spirit Hall deacons and branch hall masters thousands of miles away?"

"Don't talk to me about Spirit Hall regulations. Imperial law also forbids buying and selling slaves. Which noble lords listen to you?"

"The rules say reports must be submitted layer by layer, and the higher-ups will give rewards. But how much of those rewards actually reaches the grassroots deacons?"

Seeing Qian Renxue's expression grow uglier and uglier, Su Yu quickly said, "Don't take it out on Lao Wang, okay? Cooks sneaking food is an unspoken rule of the trade, the kind everyone accepts."

Qian Renxue was so angry that she laughed. "Do I look like the kind of person who vents helpless rage on innocent people?"

"Hard to say..."

"Su Yu!"

"Ahem, just joking. I was only trying to lighten the mood."

Only after seeing Qian Renxue calm down did Su Yu return to the point. "Seriously, you can send someone to Salas and get a list of how many children with Innate Soul Power above level seven Spirit Hall deacons have discovered within the Heaven Dou Empire."

"Then have Elder Pufferfish work with me to test them. There will definitely be omissions..."

Pufferfish: You cold, heartless person, I will never forgive you! Never!

Qian Renxue closed her eyes. Even without verifying it, she knew Su Yu was right.

Wasn't Tang San, who had awakened Innate Full Soul Power, the best example?

If that information had been reported in time, why would Spirit Hall have needed to search for Tang Hao and his son for so long, like looking for a needle in the ocean?

A moment later, Qian Renxue opened her eyes and looked at Su Yu, her gaze full of anticipation. "Do you have any good suggestions for handling this situation?"